I'm the author of "How We Make Stuff Now" and the Co-founder and CEO of The Grommet. We launch innovative products from small businesses.

The magic of team energy exchange

I often tell aspiring entrepreneurs that the unexpected side of being a founder is turning into a human battery cell. Specifically, small teams subconsciously tap into founders for energy. You can’t really have a bad day (at least not too often.) The ripple effects are too costly.

Of course no leader can really live up to that Energizer Bunny ideal every single day, but the effort to do so matters. However, the happy other side of that coin is that a great team can give any founder way more energy than they take.

I’m having one of those weeks where the team is giving way more energy to me than I could possibly radiate to them.

Here are a few examples, in pictures:

OK this little Grommet label is teensy weensy. But team member Erik Wessel achieved a first in helping a Maker to print their association with Grommet right on their packages. It’s something I have envisioned and wanted for a very long time. Erik didn’t even know that. He just went for it.

Ali Kelly’s cousin has heard how crazy our Q4 is. She conveniently works at Sam Adams and sent us some ice cold cases to get us through hump day.

One of the craziest places to work in December is our customer support team. Talk about nerves of steel. Pictured is veteran Mike Hanold sweating the details. He gives me energy. UX designer Allycia Jones (of the halo) is one of many team volunteers who have answered the call to pinch hit upstairs as needed.

The LAST thing this team needs is to create big new initiatives in December. But they did. Here is one: we held a Facebook Live event last night to answer community gifting dilemmas, improv-style. Mike Lovett, on the right, spearheaded the event, and was supported by a dozen able (but sleep-deprived) warriors to pull this fun event off. (Margo Pyne and Alessandra Hankinson shown assisting.)